


Not What You Thought

by Hairu Halvine (SoulofTheWorld)



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Damon woke up 20 years later, F/F, F/M, I'll just add more later..., Original Character-centric, Pseudo-dad Stefan, can someone help me with this, desiccated Damon, what tags am I gonna use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:34:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26925199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoulofTheWorld/pseuds/Hairu%20Halvine
Summary: Damon desiccated himself and woke up 20 years later to Stefan and a girl with Bonnie's likeness. Will he figure out the secret Bonnie kept from him all these years?
Relationships: Bonnie Bennett/Damon Salvatore, Caroline Forbes/Stefan Salvatore, Original Female Character(s)/Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character(s)/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 63





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! I'm pretty new, though I have written fanfiction numerous times before. I just don't post them sorry. So I've been writing this for a while now, even have a whole cast and everything. I'll be updating once a month because...well, I'm not really a writer or English major or anything, I just put in at least 30 minutes of writing each night to fulfill fantasies. By the way, this is my first (published) Bamon fic, so...I'm not sure, please welcome me...? Aah, by the way, I've never watched the TV series before so, please ignore my mistakes in the timeline. Anyway, please stick around to the end of the chapter for another author note!

Damon slept deep underwater, floating within, floating in nothing. No sight, no sound, no thought, feeling weightlessness, and _nothing_. Sometimes there will be an occasional memory, of a beautiful woman in tears, of a warm hand patting his shoulder, of green eyes crinkling in laughter, but they all fade into nothing.

Then.

There was something, a feeling of water, of air, of the ground. There was the sound of a warm voice calling for him.

" _Damon._ "

There were memories, of green grass and football, of hugs and burning throats, of pain and fire mixed all together. A man yelling, a woman screaming, a decision made.

Then there were feelings, of grief and sadness when thoughts were comprehended once again, of loss when he remembered the past long gone.

" _Damon,"_ they both call.

And there was light as he slowly opened his eyes, two blurred shapes coming into focus. Of blonde hair and a serious face, of green eyes and honey-colored skin.

He mumbles a name, "Bonnie?"

"Damon," his brother called, his voice low. "We need you right now."

Damon fought the nothingness, fingers and toes, hands and feet, arms and legs, and so on. He struggles to get up as the shapes moved away. He slowly turned his head to the side, to look at the shapes better till they become less shapes and more people.

His brother he came to recognize first, the serious face, the usual frown marring his lips whenever he looks at Damon, looking like a high school student and not a day older. Stefan's expression softened when he caught sight of the jarred and confused face of his brother. "Welcome back to the land of the living," he greeted.

Then Damon looked at the other, and she wasn't Bonnie. The grief returned tenfold at the thought that she's already dead, so he looks over at Elena's coffin, still shut tight. "Is Bonnie—"

"Not yet, Damon," he looked up at Stefan when he paused, catching sight of the pain that flashed through his face before it was replaced with serious determination. "But she's dying, she wanted to see you before she goes."

Damon closed his eyes at his words, remembering his once best friend. He wondered if she forgave him for what he did. He looked once again at Elena's coffin, thoughts running on how he didn't want to face Bonnie. He once again remembered the last time he saw her, how angry and pained she looked at him when he told her he's leaving, how a few days before that, he caressed her sleeping face lovingly as she slept on his bed. "How many years passed?" He asked.

When he looked up, he caught sight once again of the girl with Stefan. She looked in her teens, the same age as Stefan pretends to be, and he wondered what she's doing with them. She was staring at him with emerald eyes, filled with coldness with hints of curiosity in her gaze but her face still stiff. Her attention was unnerving and she seemed a bit familiar but for the life of Damon, he can't ever recall meeting someone like her.

"21," Stefan answered, returning Damon's attention to him. "21 years since you desiccated."

Bonnie didn't even get to 50. The simple fact hurt him and he felt a small bit of regret with his decision to leave them. Anger coursed through his blood when he looked back at Stefan. "What happened? Didn't you protect her?"

Stefan's gaze turned cold upon hearing his words. "Like you didn't?" He replied stiffly.

Pain flashed across Damon's features before he snarled and shot out of his coffin. "I did this for you two!" He yelled.

Stefan shook his head at him, the frown back. "Listen, I don't want to argue about this for now. Bonnie wants to see you."

It was like a slap for Damon, causing him to snap out of his rage. He dumbly stood there as he watched Stefan address the girl next to him.

"Bea," Stefan called for her and touched her shoulder lightly, and she looked at him with a brow raised in question. "Why don't you go ahead first? I'll take care of this."

She gave a quick glance at Damon, her gaze oddly resentful before her face smoothed out as she turned around to head out of the room. Damon's eyes followed her form confusedly and curiously, wondering if he knew her or he did something to deserve that. "Who's the chick?" he asked.

Stefan glanced at Damon from the corner of his eye. He briefly hesitated before he answered, "Bonnie's."

"Bonnie's?" Realization immediately hit him as he looked once again at where the girl disappeared. A number of feelings emerged on his chest, conflicting senses of loss and jealousy, followed by the crushing feeling of sadness and defeat. Of course, obviously, Bonnie would move on and live her life, fall in love with another man and have children. He knew that when he decided to desiccate himself but the knowledge that she did still hurt. "I see," he simply replied as he tried to push down all that he felt.

Stefan didn't comment on his reaction, he merely shook his head as he went ahead of Damon. "Let's go, brother."

It was night when they got back to the road where the car was parked. It wasn't Damon's Camaro but a completely different car that Damon has never seen before but would agree with his brother's tastes. The girl was nowhere in sight but he could hear the faint rumble of an engine. He looked down the road in front of the car and saw the girl straddling a black bike ahead of them, her helmeted head turned to the side and the tinted glass raised up to watch them from the corner of her eye.

"Damon, if you please," Stefan dryly called from within the car as he leaned down to look at Damon from the open window.

Damon flashed over to the passenger side, annoyed with his brother's orders. "Don't get your panties in a twist, Stefan," he scathingly said as he sat on the leather seats. He looked ahead of him to see the girl putting down the helmet's glass as she revved up the bike. She sped away quickly down the road without waiting for them.

Damon stared in the direction she went to till she disappeared from his sight, just as Stefan was starting the car. He looked away out the window when she was gone and not a word was exchanged between him and his brother.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damon figures out a few more things about this world 20 years later but some secrets still remain hidden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, welcome back!
> 
> This is a pretty long chapter today. I might upload those and sometimes they'll be short, it depends on what kind of message or thing I'm trying to show in the story right now. (Actually, I wanted to cut it cause it is a long chapter but I read it multiple times and decided not to cause one part might not be enough of a plot point.) 
> 
> And hey! You're gonna see Bea's face claim now! Woohoo! She's so pretty. Her face claim is Kenya Zinzi Brown, I got a lot of pictures of her in my computer cause...well, I was obsessed with how perfect she looks like for Bea. Lmao, posting the picture here is really troublesome, if you got some time, I also post it on my IG cause edits. 
> 
> And...internet connection in this country is crap. I'm sorry for the late post, I was going to post this on Saturday AND Sunday but...well. Good news is that I won't change my schedule and I'll keep posting on Saturdays. Anyway, have fun reading!

  
  
  
  


(For those who has issues seeing Bea's picture, this is the link : [Beatrice "Bea" Bennett Face Claim](https://www.instagram.com/p/CGgorpYh1i7/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link))

A couple of minutes of driving passed before they caught up to her form and another hour of silence before Stefan broke the silence. He took out his phone and typed for a couple of seconds on the screen before he pushed it against his ear. Damon could hear the unchanging sound of a phone connecting to another before it cut off suddenly to the sound of wind and engine. 

"Bea, let's take a rest at the nearest stop," he heard Stefan say. 

There were two clicks of the tongue that replied to that but nothing else. 

"You need to rest, I don't want you to crash on the way here." There was silence in reply to that and despite the fact that she hasn't uttered a word once, Damon could tell that she was quite stubborn. 

"Bea, I don't want to bring Bonnie her daughter's body," Stefan calmly stated in a way that belied how used he is in handling her.

A quick answer of a single click of the tongue was given, her irritation palpable through the phone. Nevertheless, a quirk appeared at the side of Stefan's mouth as she hung up. 

Damon glanced between his brother's relaxed countenance and the girl outside, observing. "Switched Caroline yet?" he casually asked. 

Stefan side-eyed him, brows furrowed in confusion before it cleared up, switching quickly to surprised then to disturbed. "Oh, no. It's not like that," he said like the thought never occurred to him before. "Bea is…" he stopped. Daemon glanced at him, catching sight of a stormy expression and the tightening of his grips on the wheel before it smoothed out into an indifferent expression. "I took care of her when she was a child." 

Daemon would've latched on to that momentarily slip of his face if it weren't for the words he said. "Took care?" he repeated with surprise, eyes widening as he fully faced his brother. The small tidbit presented information about Bonnie and he was hungry about what happened to her for the last 21 years. "Where's the father?" 

"Well…" Stefan trailed off slowly, "she told me it was a one night stand." 

"Wow," Daemon echoed, struggling to hide the surprise and jealousy he's feeling underneath forced calm and awe, "didn't think Bonbon had it in her." 

Stefan visibly cringed. "You'll have to ask Bonnie for the rest of the details," he hurriedly said as he changed gears to slow down when he caught sight of a signage of a diner and motel a few miles before them. 

Daemon didn't say anything in reply, merely staring at his brother, wondering about what's there to hide. His mind drifted, imagining the young witch in the same way he did just before he left. Did she mourn? Probably, but Daemon could remember her face when he told her he's leaving. There was fury there and pain. 

_ "That’s what I want you to remember: that you hurt me,"  _ were the words she said to him. 

But it seems that she moved on, got over all the problems he caused when he was leaving, maybe with that one hiccup that resulted in the girl parking her bike beside their car, and Bonnie seemed like she's happy. Maybe that's for the best, nevermind the fact that it caused an ache in his chest or that for the past few hours they've been traveling he's been thinking about what-ifs: what if he stayed? What if he was with her, protecting them all? What if they ended up together for the next 60 years of her life? The Bonnie to his Clyde. Bonnie and Damon. 

Stefan slamming the car door shut jolted him out of his thoughts. He caught sight of his brother pausing at the front of the car, turning his body back just a little to lock eyes for a moment, his gaze contemplative, before continuing on to catch up with the girl.

Daemon took his time getting off of the car and strolling over to the two who were conversing at the front of the motel's entrance. He caught Stefan's face in its serious form and heard the concerned note in his voice, " —fore we check-in?" 

Bea was frowning back at his brother, looking displeased at the words he's saying. She shook her head lightly and proceeded to gesture quickly. Stefan glanced at her hands for half a second before shaking his own head. 

"You need to eat, Bea," he sternly said as he gave a few quick gestures of his own but the girl didn't even glance at it as she glowered at him, her hands a blur as she replied back mid-sentence her own gestures that Daemon came to realize is probably ASL. "You can't skip three meals. Bonnie doesn't even like it when you skip one." 

Bea narrowed her eyes at him in silence, her following gesture was short and swift. She turned her body to face the hotel but snapped her head back to Stefan, giving another set of gestures. 

Stefan's expression softened, a small smile on his face as he burrowed his hands within his pockets. He shrugged, his tone jovial, "if it works." 

Daemon stood side by side with his brother, watching the exchange. Bea gave him a quick glance then faced Stefan, rolling her eyes at him before turning her back. 

"What was that about?" Daemon asked his brother, an eyebrow raised in question. 

"Stubborn Bennetts," Stefan murmured. "I'll need to take her to the diner later. You coming with?" 

"No, though I do need to feed again sometime tonight." Daemon didn't give Stefan a chance to reply as he continued, "I thought she's just really quiet." 

"Bea's born mute."

Damon gave a small noncommittal hum, looking over at his brother when he didn't say anything back to find that he's also looking at him from the corner of his eyes. 

"Do you mind it? The muteness, I mean," Stefan swiftly tacked on at the end when he saw Damon's raised eyebrow. His tone was a bit tense and hesitant, like a child asking his father's opinion about something he's invested in. 

"Why would I?" Damon replied back, genuinely confused. He noticed Stefan's stance relaxed, a small smile curling at the corners of his lips, and the sight confused him more. "If there's any kind of problem, it would be that I don't know a lick of ASL and that she looks at me like she wants to bury me back in my coffin." 

Stefan's smile became strained for a second as he gave a quick pat on Damon's upper arm. "I'm sure you can learn some ASL, brother." Then he turns his head and goes to the motel's front desk, which Bea's already leaving from with a key in one hand and not a glance back at them. 

"Last room available is a double," he heard the clerk say in a bored tone. "Cash, credit, or tap." 

"Tap," Stefan replied back while taking out his phone, making a few taps on the screen before turning it face down to a device on the side. 

The clerk looked at his computer when he heard a faint  _ ding _ then nodded as he handed the key over to Stefan. "Have fun."

"Right," was his brother's dry reply. Stefan faced Damon once again, wordlessly gesturing with one hand to come with him. 

Damon followed, throwing a quick grin at the clerk, flashing him his sharp fangs and veined cheeks, taking amusement out of his startled and confused face. "Couldn't we just compel someone to give up a room?" he groaned as they trekked down the path towards their destination. "I don't think the two of us will be buddy-ing up soon and sharing a single room sounds like a disaster waiting to happen." 

Stefan abruptly stopped walking and turned his body to the side to look at Damon in the eye, making Damon pause with moving forward when he saw the serious face he's making. "I admit, what happened 20 years ago when you left us," he glanced away for a moment, mouth in a stern line, before he continued, "I did hold it against you back there, but I eventually came to understand why you made it."

"Oh, did you really?" Damon rolled his eyes, his tone sarcastic. "Saint Stefan, forgiving all of my sins-"

"I  _ don't _ ," Stefan interjected, "forgive you." His gaze was heavy and solid, filled with unnamed emotion. "I understood your decision, but Damon, you have to know that I needed you back then."

Once again, something boiled within Damon's chest. Rage, sadness, regret, he didn't really know. "You survived, didn't you? For 20 years. Whatever happened then, I was the factor that was risking you all and I removed it."

"Nothing was solved when you desiccated, Damon," Stefan continued, but he didn't match the tone his brother used but turned somber instead, "the matter with Rayna continued for five years before we found help. Everything was so difficult then, just trying to keep everyone safe and out of her sight. We were in a dark place without you."

“Then why wake me up now? Why not years ago when you were running?”

“It’s B-” Stefan cut himself off, taking a deep breath before continuing, “It’s because something completely unexpected happened. It’s a matter…” he faltered a bit, “we’ll talk to you about it. But you have to know, there were times when I went to visit you,” there were a hundred words that passed in that short silence, unspoken, “to talk.” Stefan shook his head, trying to dispel the tense atmosphere, “but I just want you to know that things change in 20 years, Damon. Ultimately, I'm just glad you're back here with us." 

Damon, silent and taken aback, searched his face. Stefan doesn't usually say that to him, considering all that Damon did to him in the past. Still, with the expression of utter honesty that Stefan wore, he didn't doubt his words and sincerity. He wanted to ask more, what happened back then? Why can't he tell him right now? "I'm glad that I'm back," instead, he hesitatingly replied, for now putting away all the questions at the back of his mind.

A small gentle smile appeared on Stefan's face and turned his back to continue their short walk in comfortable silence with Damon for once not feeling the urge to pop that peaceful bubble enveloping them. He fell into deep thought, trying to process all the things Stefan said. He could tell he was still hiding something, but like his brother said, it’s a talk that could be had later when he’s back with everyone.

"Bea," Stefan all of a sudden stopped and called when they both caught sight of her form crouching at the end of the hallway three doors down ahead of them, her back leaning against the wall as she looked up from the phone in her hand. She slowly stood up, pocketing her phone with her left and gesturing with her right. "Room 105, this one," Stefan replied as he placed his hand on the door beside them. 

Bea nodded, giving a short gesture then pointing at the ceiling which Damon interpreted that she's staying a floor above them. 

"Alright, I'll pick you up in a few, okay?" Stefan smiled a bit at her but silence momentarily stretched between them when she didn't reply or leave. 

Bea stared hard at Stefan, seemingly scrutinizing him. Her expression is a mix of confused and curious, a touch of wariness in her eyes appearing as she glanced between the two of them. The movement of her hand was slow, seemingly hesitant as she relayed another message to Stefan. 

"It's fine, Bea, I'm alright," his brother gently said, voice soft and reassuring. 

She then suddenly narrowed her eyes, glaring at Damon that he felt startled. She didn't gesture anything else but the warning in her eyes is unmistakable even to him, her expression so fiercely protective that he can't help but overlap the memories with Bonnie over hers. Just as fast as it happened, she already turned her back, going around the corner at the end of the pathway, presumably to climb a set of stairs. 

"Well, little brother," Damon started, raising an eyebrow at Stefan's amused expression, surely knowing that what Damon is going to say next is not to be taken seriously, "it seems that you have a guardian angel on your side."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wah, I wrote the talk between Damon and Stefan really short at first cause, like I said, I didn't watch the show (just...love triangles turn me off, especially one that's multiple seasons long.....AND BAMON). So I researched a lot about how I could end the matter with Rayna and there, lol, such a short paragraph which I didn't put a lot of details into. Thank god for avoiding topics and changing the subject.
> 
> On to another subject, I did end up making an IG account. At first I was just thinking that the Bea infographic slide deck might end up being a waste if I don't make one so I did. But I wasn't gonna upload it anytime soon cause...spoilers. So I made it into half diary/journal/creative outlet and half fanfiction extra post so.
> 
> Follow me on @hairu_halvine for depressing college student thoughts and extra posts like Bea's face claim above!
> 
> Have a nice day!
> 
> P.S. To my best friend who found my fic on day 1 when I didn't intend her to yet  
> Lmao, hey sis.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bea has a plan. She also wants her questions answered. (Too bad that won't happen.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished this chapter today and after I post this, I'm gonna pass cause this week is crazy busy. Listing them all somehow stressed me out lmao. How are you guys, by the way?
> 
> Oh, I would also like to respond to all those reviews. SPOILER: for all those who guessed correctly, yes, you guessed correctly. For those who guessed wrong, yes, you guessed wrong. SPOILER END. Still, I'm happy you guys are entertained by this. I realized that this is such a slow burn (yes, I meant that) and most of you are expecting Bamon immediately. I'm sorry about that (and for future plot points as well). When I was making this in my head, Bea is, let's say, she's the Elena Gilbert of this fic (sans the love triangle thing), or the Hope Mikaelson. She's the protagonist, except we're looking from the POV of Damon that's why whatever is happening on her side, we won't know much aside from what Damon could catch. And Damon, he has a life too, so that's where this story comes in. And that's my reasoning. 
> 
> I kind of felt guilty cause I didn't put this immediately in the first chapter (I forgot from all the excitement). Hopefully you guys can still find some joy in this one.

Warm, thick blood flowed down his throat, the taste so delicious and the feeling so euphoric that he can't help but close his eyes. It's been so long, the only thing he drank was from the blood bags Stefan gave when they woke him up. This, feeding straight from the source, is the one that made the pangs of hunger fade away, the only thing that could fully satisfy him. The body in his arms is stiff and he could smell the fear emanating from her yet she didn't yell out nor speak a word. He won't drain her dry, of course, no matter how hungry he is, so with one last gulp, the black veins around his eyes receded and his fangs detached its place from her brown neck. 

He savored the last taste from his tongue for a short second then opened his eyes to meet Bonnie's green ones, blown wide with fright, and suddenly the blood he ingested tasted rancid, rotting, burning his gums and settling heavily in his stomach. He pulls away and stumbles back, alarmed at the sight of Bonnie with blood dripping down her neck but a quick blink and the illusion faded, returning back to the pretty girl with brown skin and a different shade of green eyes. She was the same girl he picked up from behind the diner, who approached him to flirt and he entertained because she was pretty enough. Now though, the sight sickened him as he realized he saw an echo of his best friend in some of her features and that was why he accepted. 

The girl still stood unmoving, her expression unchanging from the terror on her face, and usually, Damon would take a bit of glee from that but right now…

"Fuck," he muttered, palm covering his eyes as his mind raced. The news of Bea, Bonnie's daughter, and thoughts of time lost might have filled the forefront of his mind but it seems that denial can only last for so long before Bonnie's incoming death started to sink in.

He looked once again at the frightened girl, only managing a second before he looked away again. With a sigh, he met her eyes, focusing on the unfamiliar color, and compelled, "I want you to forget this ever happened. You were just at the back of the diner, you needed a break, then you go back to finish whatever you were doing before you met me and afterward, go home," he paused, catching sight of the blood that's starting to dry on her neck. "Drink some of my blood and clean up before you go," he added.

A couple of moments later, he absently walked back to where his and Stefan's room was. Even far away, he still caught sight of Bea by the door, leaning on the wall, her phone once again in her hand. The phone lit up her face in white light and though the height and features are all wrong, he could see the furrow of her brows and the frown on her mouth, a mirror of her mother with the focused expression she wore. 

She looked up and straightened when she saw him, her face impassive. The white light disappeared as she locked her phone, leaving only the dim orange lighting above her head.

Damon approached her. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

Bea hesitated for a moment, probably thinking before she unlocked her phone and typed for a couple of seconds.  _ [Do you know ASL?] _ She showed him a couple of seconds later. 

"Never bothered," Damon replied with a shrug after he read it.

Bea frowned at him. Still, she composed herself and typed again on her phone.  _ [It's fine. Waiting for Stefan] _

Damon raised an eyebrow at that. "What are you, a newborn chick? What are you waiting for him for?"

This time the glare she wore was more apparent and the downturn of the corner of her mouth doesn't seem like it's gonna fade anytime soon. She stabbed at her phone and quickly showed it back to him.  _ [Don't call me a newborn chick. He's feeding] _

"Let me guess, still the same Bambi diet?"

_ [there is nothing wrong with that] _

Damon rolled his eyes at her protectiveness, a small smirk on his lips. "Same old Stefan, didn't really think he'd switch anyway." She faced her phone again and Damon knows she has a lot to say to him, probably something insulting too, judging by how long she's typing and how hard she's tapping. While it's fun to rile her up, something he noticed that's also in common with Bonnie, he immediately interrupted her before she could finish. "Hey, I want to ask you about— about your mom," he opened, dropping the mocking tone in his voice.

She abruptly stopped but didn't raise her head, waiting for him to continue. The silence between them was tense and Damon could tell that the atmosphere changed into something heavier.

"What happened to her?" Damon asked, focused on her reaction. The scene he witnessed earlier when he was feeding absolutely shook him, and right now, all he wanted was to know. And if there's anything he can do to save her, then…

It took her longer to answer. Damon watched as she gripped her phone tightly, her gaze locked to it but unseeing. He could hear her heartbeat abruptly spike up and he half wondered if he should ask again but she closed her eyes and gave a deep sigh, opening her eyes once again and slowly tapping on her phone.

Gone was the irk on her face, and the coldness returned. Her eyes were stone as she met his gaze, her phone in her hand facing him. Damon studied her carefully before he read what she wrote.

_ [Mom is cursed] _

"Cursed?" He repeated, surprised. He somehow knew that it was supernatural-related, especially since she's a Bennett witch, but he still kind of hoped that she avoided that, to live a long, normal life away from any danger. "How long does she have?"

_ [A week and a half] _

Damon blankly stared at the words, mind racing. A week and a half, that would be 10-11 days before Bonnie's gone once again. It was longer than he expected since he didn't really ask Stefan and he just assumed she's on her deathbed. But now, knowing it, he wanted to ask why no one's doing anything about it, why they're just waiting and waiting for those ten days to pass. Bonnie, his best friend, the one who saved their asses multiple times and deserves to fully live out her life, would be gone in a few days. And when she's gone...Elena would wake up, and Damon should be happy about that fact alone, except he's not and he won't be, because Damon loves Bonnie and when she's gone…

_ "I would lose my mind," _ an echo of his voice said.

He looked at Bea's face, the other person whom he knew would be closer to his best friend than he is, and he expected to see her defeated and broken, but she's not. Her expression was as cold as before but her eyes are fire and steel. 

"What about the one who cursed her?" he quickly asked.

_ [Dead] _

"Other accomplices?"

She didn't type and just thrust the screen to him again.  _ [Dead] _

"How about clues? Records? Spells?" Damon asked insistently, a trace of manic in his voice, feeling the tight grip of desperation at the ray of hope. He grabbed her wrist firmly, impatient at how long she took typing the words, never before feeling how much he wanted to learn her language at this second. He wanted to see it on her face and expression, on how much she could do it, how determined she is, how much she is hoping for herself.

And when she stopped trying to pull away from his hold and looked up at him, giving up on typing on her phone, she mouths the words, silent syllables and faint hisses of letters, a statement she is set on fulfilling.

_ I'll save her. _

She was not someone who is lost on what to do, there was determination in her eyes, a mirror of a girl years ago determined to protect her town and the people she loves, even at the cost of her life. Looking at her, at this moment, he felt a strange connection. It wasn't something he felt with Elena, that overwhelming, consuming feeling he's so familiar with, nor with Bonnie, a slow, burning connection so profound that he had trouble pinpointing when it happened and what it is. Hers was a camaraderie, that he felt her desperation and obsession rooted deep within her soul, that she's going to do everything if it meant Bonnie's survival and that if everything failed, her world would burn.

"You better," he got out after a second. "Bonnie is," important to me, someone I love, someone who rooted herself deep into my life that I wouldn't know what to do if she was gone, someone who made me feel things I've never felt before— "my best friend. Whatever your plans are, count me in." 

She pulled her wrist away from his hand, Damon allowing it when he saw the hesitant but thinking expression on her face. She slowly tapped on her phone again and showed it to him.  _ [If all else fails I'll turn mom]  _ is written on it. 

The idea occurred to him too when he thought of how to save her. Bonnie as a vampire. His best friend's face, as young as when he left her, flashed in his mind. He could imagine him standing beside her as years passed: powerful, unaging, undying. The idea of having her forever thrilled yet scared him at the same time. He could feel that slow crawl of something creeping up his heart, the same feeling he felt years ago which he thought he left buried back in his coffin. 

He took a second to compose himself, to push down and forget the emotion trying to bubble up. This is Bonnie, his best friend, he wouldn't ruin a chance to save her life just because he can't explain half the shit he's going through. He nodded at her, "if we can't solve this, we feed Bonnie my blood."

She bit her lip, uncertainty, and fear momentarily flashing across her features. Still, she nodded back firmly.  _ [Don’t tell anyone] _ she quickly typed and showed him.

"Alright, let’s talk about this later." He glanced around at the empty but lit area and the forest that surrounded it. "Don't wait up for Broody Forehead, he’s probably off sulking about something.”

Damon turned away, keys in hand, and about to head back to his room, but a hand gripped his forearm hard, stopping him. He looked at Bea once again, this time in confusion. An eyebrow raised, he silently asked what she needed and sharply snapped when she didn't respond, "don't be creepy, what do you want?" 

Emotions ran across her face, uncertainty, hesitance, and confusion mixing with frustration and distress. She stared, eyes wide like she’s looking at him for something. Damon could hear her loud heartbeat, going faster by the second. “Bea?” he cautiously called out her name, can’t help the worry and confusion in his tone. There was a charge in the air akin to a live wire, dangerous and unpredictable. She emitted power, and Damon remembered that she's Bonnie’s daughter and of Bennett blood, one of the most powerful witch covens that ever existed. 

Damon might've constantly gone up against people stronger than him but right now, with his arm in her grip, he stood frozen, unable to pull away. Uncomfortable heat surrounded him and grew in his chest as sweat beaded against his brow at the thought of her setting him on fire. He can’t understand why she’s doing this. His mind backtracked at the words they exchanged, wondering if it was something he said. Her grip grew tighter and tighter till he could already feel a faint sting of pain. "Ow, hey-"

_ Why?  _ He caught her mouth at him, interrupting his thinking. 

"What?" 

_ Why,  _ she spat out silently, each syllable exaggerated,  _ did you leave?  _ The scene would've looked funny if it weren't for the fact that Damon, despite the confusion about her question, is hyper-aware of the perilous situation he is in. Her eyes were flashing and he could tell that whatever wrong he did, it was something important to her and she's holding him responsible for it. 

Damon wanted to ask what the hell is she talking about when the lightbulbs lighting the motel simultaneously shattered, glass shards raining down upon the ground as the area was plunged into darkness. Screams echoed around them as the people that stayed in the motel and diner responded to the sudden blackout. He could only breathe a sigh of relief as the power dissipated. He saw her alarmed face as she flinched back, letting go of his arm as she struggled to look around at the damage she did. Her breathing was fast and stuttering, her face pale. 

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Damon muttered and she looked up at him, her eyes wide in surprise. “Are you trying to kill me?”

"Damon! Bea!" Damon heard Stefan call and he looked up to see him rushing over to them. His brother looked worried, carefully scrutinizing Damon’s form but directed most of his attention on the young witch. “What’s going on? What happened?”

Bea didn’t reply. She just shrugged as she crossed her arms. Her expression looked guilty and a bit chastised. She neither glanced at Stefan nor at Damon, her gaze simply stuck to the ground.

“Did you do something?” Stefan suddenly asked him, his voice stern.

Damon widened his eyes dramatically. “Me? She’s the one who wanted to kill me,” he protested as he jabbed a thumb in her direction. “I didn’t do anything to her.”

Bea stepped up, using her hand to sign something at Stefan. Her burrows were furrowed, her hands swift before it faltered for a second to continue again.

When Damon looked at Stefan, he could only guess that what Bea told him wasn’t something he bought since his expression is familiar to when Damon tried to bullshit his way out of something. Stefan shook his head at her, his mouth in a straight, grim line as he crossed his arms. “Damon,” he called to Damon without looking at him, “I need to talk to Beatrice alone.”

Bea pressed her mouth together, petulant, but she didn’t counter his words and stayed on her spot.

“It wasn’t my fault,” Damon insisted as he threw glares at her. “If she needed something,” he stopped, thinking back to her question then, “she’s welcome to talk to me  _ without _ attempting homicide.”

Her expression turned sour at that as she twitched, immediately giving up on resisting as she shortly typed on her phone.  _ [Pot]  _ And Damon smirked at that, momentarily forgetting what happened earlier.

“Damon,” Stefan sternly reminded.

Damon raised both his hands in surrender as he backed away. “Don’t be such a dad, Stefan.” He didn’t miss the twitch of his brother’s cheek as he scowled at Damon’s words. Damon entered their dark room, throwing another glance back at the both of them to see them watching him before he closed the door and putting them out of his sight.

He listened intently, hearing Stefan ask Bea to walk with him in a tone that left no room for arguments. Their footsteps slowly faded away till all he can hear is nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not a sponsor but holy, I love the Fleksy keyboard so much. Fleksy pleas sponsor me lmfao.
> 
> Also Bonnie and Damon will finally meet next chapter and even when I'm the author I'm getting so excited that I said 'yas' with a bunch of 'a's. And Bonnie- well, I'm gonna post a picture of her next chapter. And I love your reviews so much! But really, like half of those reviews make me sweat hard, not gonna say which ones but just let it be known that it's taking my all to not reveal a spoiler cause this is important to me. If I ever need someone to rant on about the story, I have my friend right over there.
> 
> Thanks again!
> 
> Follow me on my IG if you guys are interested:  
> @hairu_halvine

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Long time no see once again! It's been like 5 minutes and I missed you guys, lmao. This is gonna be a somewhat long author's note by the way.
> 
> So I mentioned in the above note, I have a whole cast for this story which I already did though I never thought I'll post this. I get obsessive. But I'm gonna post the face claims and is Instagram okay?
> 
> Like I said, I didn't take a major on anything writing-related, I'm actually a graphic designer and I made these slide decks and I completely filled it with an infographic for this fic cause I needed the motivation and...I just went out of control...I'll probably remake it with the "lorem ipsum" thing and replace the face claims with stock photos when I put it in my portfolio but at least you'll get to see it filled, ahahaha. I'm thinking of also filling that thing with microfictions, and future fanfiction things *hint hint*. And why? Listen. I need to fill my portfolio but jezus I can't find motivation in stock photos.
> 
> But anyway, have a great day, whatever it is you're going through or dealing with, you can get past it stronger and more knowledgable.


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